Fourth of five parts
Re “Mielke Applies Lessons from His Father to Gourley Flap”
Background: Summoning a maximal amount of venom, School Board member Steve Gourley has developed an unprecedented habit at meetings of openly, forcefully, proudly, angrily — and repeatedly — calling David Mielke, the President of the Teachers Union, a “liar,” alleging he deliberately distorts collective bargaining developments and other information.
Eight days until the next momentous School Board meeting. Eight days remain before congenial David Mielke is scheduled to stand in the dock and be rhetorically slapped in the face by angry Steve Gourley who is expected once again to repeatedly call Mr. Mielke a “liar.”
Beyond the gaping differences in their personalities and approaches to work, the President of the Teachers Union and the sternest voice on the School Board would be rivals in any setting because of their philosophies, objectives and values.
Mr. Mielke is laid back every day. Mr. Gourley may never have enjoyed one laidback day, which helps to explain the one-way hardline war Mr. Gourley has been waging for months, largely without response until the present series.
Truths My Father Told Me
Mr. Mielke said that he has tried to live by the moral principles taught by his minister father.
“My father told us we should be tough on the issues but gentle with the people,” Mr. Mielke said. After allowing, with a laugh, that “I haven’t always done that,” he said that “most of the time I have tried to follow that rule.
“Yes, you can be very tough on the issues. There are going to be disagreements, whether you are in the civil rights movement or the union movement.
“But people are people, and that has been one of the things that has guided me.
“People who go into teaching, for the most part, are pretty caring and giving. Otherwise, you couldn’t do it. That is what teaching is about.”
Speaking out after pained weeks of swallowing insults and feeling humiliated, Mr. Mielke swings his head forth and back. “This whole ongoing episode is not good for anybody,” he says.
“The sooner we can return to normalcy, the better. “
Question: Do you think a private meeting between the two of you could heal what ails?
“Who knows?” Mr. Mielke said.
“I actually went in and spoke with the Superintendent,” Patti Jaffe. “I told her, ‘If you would like me to meet with the Board, in Closed Session, we can have a discussion about discourse.’
“I mean, the School District has civility policies, the Board does. They have policies that address meeting conduct. They’ve got rules that essentially say ‘we are going to treat each other with respect.’
“I am just asking that they be enforced.”
Of Ms. Jaffe’s response, Mr. Mielke said:
“I’ve got a great relationship with her, and I think she would like us to get to a more positive place also.”
It isn’t a sailboat ride on calm seas being the President of the Teachers Union. “Community members call me sometimes, and it happened again recently when someone called to complain about something I had said,” Mr. Mielke said.
“I understand not everybody is in favor of unions, and some people think we should be quiet and just go teach our classes.
“I asked the man if he had called Steve Gourley and shared his concerns. He had not.”
(To be continued)
